3 most impressive Ottawa Senators players in 3-2 win over Dallas Stars feat. Matthew Highmore

The Ottawa Senators, who had gone four games without a win (0-3-1), beat the visiting Dallas Stars 3-2 on Sunday. The Stars were coming off a 2-1 shootout victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.

The Stars opened the scoring at the Canadian Tire Center at the 4:41 mark of the opening period, thanks to Jason Robertson's 11th goal of the season, as it led at the first intermission.

The Senators responded with three consecutive goals, starting with his 15th of the season from Josh Norris, followed by Tim Stutzle's 14th 39 seconds later to seize the lead.

Ottawa struck again early in the third period, with Matthew Highmore scoring his first of the season and first since April of 2022. The Stars pulled one back through Evgenii Dadonov's power-play goal with 53 seconds remaining but were unable to get any closer.

Senators goaltender Leevi Merilainen made 24 saves, while Dallas got 25 saves from Casey DeSmith in a losing effort. On that note, here's a look at the three most impressive Senators players in the win over the Stars:

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Three most impressive Ottawa Senators players in 3-2 win over Dallas Stars

#1 Matthew Highmore

Talk about your unsung hero. Never looked at as a source of offense, the Ottawa Senators got the game-winning goal from Matthew Highmore, who hadn't scored in over two calendar years spanning two and a half seasons.

Highmre banged in a loose puck at the side of the net for the go-ahead goal, which turned out to be the winner:

#2 Leevi Merilainen

Thrust into action, thanks to an injury to starter Linus Ullmark, Merilainen responded well. He collected his second victory in 24 hours by making 24 saves, including three saves each on Miro Heiskanan and Wyatt Johnston, along with three of four shots from Jason Robertson.

It's performances like Merilainen's that are helping keep the Ottawa Senators afloat while they await the return of Ullmark.

#3 Josh Norris

One of the top performers for the Senators came through again, as Norris not only scored a goal but also threw seven hits, had four shots on goal and finished with a +1 rating.

Norris was all over the ice on Sunday night for the Ottawa Senators, and they reaped the benefits.